Stakeholders and civil society organisations have called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to do more for women and engage more women in political leadership.
The call was made at a media dialogue organised by Women Radio 91.7 FM on Saturday April 6, 2024 in commemoration of the two years landmark judgement on 35 per cent Affirmative Action.
Amina Agbaje, national president of FIDA, lamented that the Tinubu-led administration appointed less women as ministers, adding that if women were considered good enough to vote and campaign during elections, they should be considered good enough to be appointed into various political positions.
The FIDA national president added that there is need to sustain and continue the demand for more women’s representation.
Another speaker, Rasheedat Medupin of Sustainable Gender Action Initiative (SGAI) harped that the government needs to partner with civil society organisations to intensify efforts to implement the 35 per cent affirmative action and also make Nigeria a nation where women’s voices are heard. Medupin, who appealed to the Tinubu-led government to uphold the judgement of April 6, 2022 by appointing more women into positions, added that Nigeria needs to accept women as accomplished leaders and ensure that gender policies are implemented.
Another contributor, Marshal Abubakar of the Falana & Falana Chambers, stated that government must be reminded to obey the rule of law by respecting and enforcing the landmark judgement.
Abubakar urged Nigerian women to go back to court to get the judgement enforced should the Tinubu administration fail to uphold the judgement.
She also highlighted the need to engage with stakeholders at the National Assembly to canvass for constitutional amendment to allow women occupy more seats in governance.
Ngozi Nwosu-Juba of Vision Spring Initiatives equally emphasised the need to involve more women at grassroots and return back to court to get the Affirmative Action judgement enforced.
Nwosu-Juba recommended that the ongoing constitutional review should be taken advantage of to revisit the five gender bills before the NASS to make up for the lack of women in governance.
On her part, Zainab Yahaya Tanko of the Nigerian Women Trust Fund stated that women have the numbers and must be adequately represented, while also calling for intensified efforts until the Affirmative Action judgement is implemented.
The consensus of the media dialogue is that government must implement in full, its own National Gender Policy that has been further made mandatory through the April 6, 2022 landmark judgement in favour of Nigerian women.
In 2020, a group of Nigerian civil society organisations led by Nigerian Women Trust Fund took the government of Nigeria to court seeking an injunction to compel the government to implement the 35 percent affirmative action as contained in the National Gender Policy which was adopted by the government in 2006.
On 6 April 2022, Nigerian women won the case was won handled for them with pro bono support from Falana and Falana Chambers.
#enforce 35 per cent Affirmative Action
#Put more women in political office
Story by Blessing Agbeetan
Women Radio 91.7
News@wfm917.com
